Paradais by Fernanda Melchor, masterfully translated by Sophie Hughes, is an absolutely entrancing, visceral read. It spans just over a hundred pages and is densely layered with complex themes written in Melchor’s pitiless prose, from ideas of classism, racism, and misogyny to the macabre acts of rape and murder. This…
Tomorrow, Tomorrow, and Tomorrow gains its name from Macbeth’s famous soliloquy. As bleak as it is, Gabrielle Zevin creates a new spin on the meaning of “tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow”: in the world of games, it’s the possibility of “infinite rebirth, infinite redemption.” We don’t always understand life and how…
The existence of fae in A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas should have been a warning sign enough for me to avoid this book. I’ve had bad experiences with fae in the past—namely, The Cruel Prince. And people loved the series, despite my developing an aversion…
“There’s a difference between really loving someone and loving the idea of her.” Gillian Flynn Gone Girl. At first glance, it seems to be another run-of-the-mill mystery thriller: troubled marriage, cheating husband, runaway wife. It cannot be further off. Let me just say that this book has become a sensation…
“If there is a hell, we’re in it. And if there’s a heaven, we’re already there. This is it.” Mieko Kawakami Shortlisted for the 2022 International Booker Prize and gaining rise on media platforms, Heaven by Mieko Kawakami has been on my radar for a while. I’m a sucker for…
“What happens to a dream deferred?Does it dry uplike a raisin in the sun?Or fester like a sore—And then run?Does it stink like rotten meat?Or crust and sugar over—like a syrupy sweet?Maybe it just sagslike a heavy load.Or does it explode?” Langston Hughes in Harlem A Raisin in the Sun…
“Chess isn’t always competitive. Chess can also be beautiful.” Walter Tevis The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis follows the story of a prodigious girl as she explores the world of chess and gradually loses herself to addiction. It is an analytical and fast-paced novel that wraps itself around Elizabeth Harmon’s…
“It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything.” Chuck Palaniuk The first rule about Fight Club is that you do not talk about Fight Club. The second rule of the fight club is that you do NOT talk about Fight Club. Only two guys to a…
“Sometimes fate is like a small sandstorm that keeps changing directions. You change direction but the sandstorm chases you. You turn again, but the storm adjusts. Over and over you play this out, like some ominous dance with death just before dawn. Why? Because this storm isn’t something that blew…
“I have become something wonderful, she thought. I have become something terrible. Was she now a goddess or a monster? Perhaps neither. Perhaps both.” R.F. Kuang As a reader, I know that determining how good a book is can be a difficult task. Some books aren’t objectively good, yet they impact…